Understanding your debt is the first step to paying it off. A lot of retirees are entering retirement with a mountain of debt. This causes financial stress that affects all aspects of life. When someone has debt going into retirement, they likely won’t have money laying around for an unexpected bill or for medical expenses. It is best to figure out what you owe as far as debt, and figure out how long it will take to pay it back bearing in mind the interest rates.
Key Takeaways:
- Four in 10 retirees cite paying off debt as a current priority, according to a recent survey by the Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies.
- Declining income and medical expenses are the leading causes of older Americans’ financial distress.
- Older consumers are using credit cards to supplement their income as well as to help adult children with cell-phone bills, car payments and other expenses.
“In inflation-adjusted terms, the median income of households in their fifties to mid sixties still lags below 2010 levels”
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